Kootenay Silver Inc (TSX-V:KTN) is kicking off a new diamond drilling program at the Columba silver project in Chihuahua, Mexico.
The program includes 15 to 17 drillholes totaling 5,000 meters, targeting the highly prospective D-Vein area.
Recent drilling in late 2023 honed in on the D-Vein target, uncovering a silver-bearing quartz-calcite-barite vein structure with the highest grades and widths yet seen at Columba.
Kootenay’s most recent drilling program successfully intercepted the D-Vein in all 12 drill holes.
CEO Jim McDonald told shareholders that the company was “very pleased with the exceptional silver grades and consistent mineralized widths” seen in the Vein.
"D-Vein target has continued to return excellent grades and widths," McDonald said in a statement.
"We commence drilling in 2024 with the aim of adding sufficient data to calculate our first mineral resource estimate at Columba by the end of the year."
The D-Vein has been intercepted by drilling over a length of 450 meters horizontally and to a depth of 250 meters. Geological mapping and sampling indicate an additional 800 meters of prospective strike length before the interpreted D-Vein structure intersects with the trace of the B-Vein/F-Vein corridor.
Highlights from the 2023 program included drilled widths such as 13.56 meters of 599 gram per ton (gpt) silver, 8.19 meters of 532 gpt silver, and 10.26 meters of 501 gpt silver.
Characteristic features of drill intercepts at Columba drilling, and D-Vein in particular, are broad zones of mineralized stockwork adjacent to veins.
Since 2019, the company has completed over 30,000 meters of diamond drilling in 147 holes at Columba, intercepting numerous veins with high silver grades and widths, indicating excellent resource potential.
The current drilling program is designed to extend the D-Vein in preparation for a follow-up program of likely 15,000 meters, aimed to delineate a maiden resource expected in late 2024.
In addition to the D-Vein, the company maintains a priority list of new vein targets and known vein extensions, all warranting drill testing.